Stocking



2 Sheets-Sheet 2. E. VERMILYEA & C. E. NORRIS.

STOGKING. No.'252,552. Patented Jan. 17,1882.

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UNITED STATI-is LPNrENT OFFICE.

'EUGENE VERMILYEA AND CHARLES E. NORRIS, OF MILLBURY, ASSIGNORS OF vONE-HALF TO JONATHAN LUTHER, OI` WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

sToCKiNG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 252,552, dated .January 17, 1852.

Application filed October 30, 1878. u.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EUGENE VnnMiLrnA and CHARLES E. NoRRIS, both of the town ot Millbury, in the county of Worcester and Commonwealth ot' Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stockings, and we do hereby declare the following to be a full and clear description of thesame and the mode ot' manufacture, reference being 1o had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

Our invention relates to an improvement in stockings, and is designed to thicken the stockings and give them increased strength at their heels. i

It consists in inserting layers` of yarn or threads side by side between each row of stitches.

The lmode of manufacture and the character zo of the fabric resulting are as follows:

Figure l is a perspective view of a portion of a stocking-heel re-enforced by the straight inlaid layers of yarn. Fig. 2 is a view of a portion of a stocking-heel re-enforced in accordance with our improvement7 said figure showing the side of the knit fabric which is opposite to the side shown in Fig. l, the former being the outside and the latter the inside of the stocking-heel. Fig. 3 shows the outline of astocking with the heel portion illustrated as produced by an ordinary knitting-machine and .re-enforced in accordance with our invention. Fig. 4 represents a side view ot' a Lamb knittin g-machine provided with our device for in- 3 5 laying the yarn or thread when in the process ot' knitting. Fig. 5 represents an end view of the same. Fig. 6 represents a View looking down upon the work, showing the inlaid yarn and the looped work of the knitting-yarn as 4o seen in the process of knitting or looping the stitches.

In the drawings, A denotes the movable carriage of a Lamb knitting-machine,'which we employ in re-enforcing the stocking-heel, and

B the needle-bed of such machine.

c c c denote the sinkers orjacks, and a a indicate the needles, and b l) the slots in the necdle-bed, in which the needles work.

O denotes the elevating-cam in the carriage 5o foroperatin g the needles. This cam is represented by dotted lines, is ofa triangular shape, and is accompanied with the usual wingor withdrawing cams. (Not shown.) One of these sets of cams is arranged on each side of the carriage, and they are moved back and forth under the foot of each needle to raise and 'depress the needles and form the stitches.

J designates a socket link on the sliding' oarriage, which receives the upper end of a coilnecting-rod, K. The other end of this rod is 6o held in a socket-link, J', ofthe crank-shaft M, which gives motion to the sliding carriage through the intervention of said connectingrod. 1 1

This machine can be operated by hand or other power.

R denotes the latch-opener, which opens the latches of the needles in the usual way.

T denotes the guide for the knitting-yarn, which is iixed to and moves with the carriage, 7o and cl represents the knitting-yarn.

Our appliance for introducing the inlaid straight or unlooped thread between the vertical rows of stitches consists ofthe linger-bar E, carrying the thread-guide or trumpet F at its upper end, and pivoted at its lower end to a block or post, D, which is .swiveled in the sliding carriage A, near the lower edge th ereoi'.

A plate or other spring, S, secured to said swivel postor block D, bears upon the heel of 8o the tinger-bar E, and serves to depress the same so as to bring the thread-guide carried by said tingerbar in proper relation to the vertical rows of stitches formed by the knittingneedles and their adjuncts. A cam, G, is secured to the top of the carriage A, opposite the swivel-post of the finger-bar E. Said cam is made with a raised central portion or swell, and has depressions at each side thereof, as is shown in Fig. 4. It will be apparent that when 9o the carriage A reaches the terminal point of its movement to the right the cam or stop H, located at this end of the machine, will throw the finger-bar to the left by causing it to ride over the central swell of the cam, when the spring S will force it down, so as to rest upon the depressed portion of the cam. The car' riage, in its movement to the let't,will now cause the thread carried by the linger-bar to be properly inlaid between the front and rear vertical roo stitches or ribs produced by the knitting-needles, As soon as the carriage has reached the limit of its movement to the left the finger-bar comes in contact with' the cam or stop H, located at this end of the machine, causing said finger-oar to again ride over the swell of the cam and pass into the depression at the other side thereof. The carriage, in its return movementto the right,\viil now cause the thread car-A ried by the linger-bar to be superposed or doubled upon the thread previously inlaid by the movement of the carriage to the left of the machine. ln the manufacture of stockings the legs down as far as the instep are knit on a circular machine. They are then transferred to the needles of a Lamb knitter, or machines of like nature, in order to knit the heel. While this portion of the stocking is being knit our appliance introduces the inlaid unknit thread, as described. The Lamb knitter has two rows of needles set in the slots of the bed-piece in alternate positions opposite each other, the sinkers heilig between them.

In order to form the ribs 0n the Lamb knitter, every other needle on one side must be drawn down below the triangular-shaped cam, when the said machine will then knit what is termed two and one, thus forming two ribs on the front to one on the back side of the fabric. When all the needles are operated the Work is what is called plain knitting,77 or one and one.

It is needless to describe in detail the process by which the looping is effected on this class of knitting. Manufacturers and operators understand it well.

Referring now to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the letter A indicates the thread of which the knit stocking is formed, and B indicates the thread which is employed for re-enforcing the stocking at its heel. In this class of knit fabric forming the stocking as herein illustrated, the fabric is formed with two loops upon one side to one loop upon the other side thereof. The re-enforcing thread is carried back and forth between the loops upon one side and the loops of the other side of the fabric during the knitting.

Figs. 1 and 2 clearly indiclte the arrangement of the re-enforcing thread, the fabric in Fig. l being shown somewhat open in order to better' show the structure of the fabric.

What we claim is- As an improved article of manufacture, a stocking re-enforced at the heel by the straight inlaid layers ofv thread B', arranged between the loops which form the ribs` ofthe stocking, substantially as described.

EUGENE VERMILYEA. CHARLES E. NORRIS.

Witnesses:

SoN'rIAGo VERDE, J. G. ARNOLD. 

